Reply To German Journalist Who Found Zagreb Boring

Before you arrive in a city you’re visiting for the first time – whether it is London, Lisbon, Zagreb or Krapina – the first thing you do is to inform yourself about what to see in that city. Every city has its own attractions of which it is proud and which are interesting to a large number of people.

After you visit the attractions that interest you, you look for the places you want to see out of your personal preferences. Some football fans may go to the Arsenal or Chelsea stadium, lovers of sweets will visit the Lisbon Belem and consume some of the legendary pastel de nata, beer lovers will go to some of the many innovative Zagreb pubs that carry craft beer.

Craft beer pub in Zagreb

No matter how many cities you visit in your life, if you are a curious person (and if your visit there is of your own choosing), there is one thing that is common to all – it will not and it cannot be boring. Some will thrill you more, some less. In some your hands (and feet) will be full of 10-day work, in some 3 days. But not a single one will be boring for you.

The problem arises when a person does not enjoy discovering a new city, but someone (probably) forces him/her to. And then he/she writes an article about it; in one of the most read European media outlets to boot, the German Der Spiegel. That is what the Berlin journalist Anne Haeming, who described the capital city of Croatia, Zagreb, as a candidate for the title of the most boring city, did.

Dolac markets Zagreb Croatia

The commentators to her article, who were rather flabbergasted by her one-sided description of the city, offered the best replies to it, as it seemed she wrote the article in a state of depression in which everything appears gray (except the red sunbrellas at the Dolac city markets). Many commentators describe Zagreb as a lively and beautiful city, which has during past years blossomed in the tourism sense. Even if they are wrong, that Zagreb is not really anything special in tourism sense, it is impossible for a person not find a corner for himself/herself.

Does Ms Haeming like to drink a beer or coffee? Zagreb offers a vast choice of creative pubs and cafés that has grown so much in the past years that the culture of drinking coffee and beer in good company has become a social habit (at times attacked because of it) elevated to a higher level. If she was not in good company, there is no problem in befriending the happy visitors to Zagreb’s pubs, especially during the weekend evenings when one or more extra may get consumed. Tkalciceva Street may seem “overused” for people living in Zagreb but for tourists it is attractive and interesting.

Tkalciceva Street, Zagreb Croatia

Does Ms Haeming like outdoors? She went on an excursion to Medvednica all the way to Villa Rebar, the former villa of Ante Pavelic (more or less in an uninteresting ruinous state), and not to mention that she visited the very Sljeme, from which sprawls a beautiful view towards Zagorje, and where one can eat some fantastic bean soup. The marvelous Medvedgrad is in the vicinity, raised above the city, frequent motive for Zagreb’s photographers. A walk along Medvednica is a true enjoyment, whether you are a mountaineer or just an ordinary walker. If she really wanted to look at ruinous buildings on Medvednica a much better choice would have been the nearby Brestovac.

Nature Park MedvednicaZagreb Croatia

View of Zagorje from SljemeZagreb Croatia

The Berlin woman visited Hrelic, the huge Zagreb flea market, where she only saw things that made her feel shame because to someone these things appeared interesting to sell. If it’s not at least a bit funny to you when you see someone selling only a left shoe or when in the scorching summer month someone tries to sell you a pudding whose use by date expired a year ago, then definitely the problem is with you. If at Hrelic you don’t see a heap of picturesque faces, if you don’t hear a person singing “Sanader is building a new house and I am dying of hunger”, then you don’t see or hear well. If in that heap of things you don’t find at least one that you like, then you are in the wrong place – perhaps a visit to a designer clothes shop would be a better choice.

Hrelic flea marketZagreb Croatia

If you visit Bundek and the only thing you see is an artificial low water level lake showing layers of gravel at the edges, and you don’t see heaps of people barbequing and having a wonderful time, how they cycle and roller skate, how they soak in the last rays of the sun before a long winter while sipping coffee, you don’t hear the screams of playful children, then it’s difficult to say that you are a talented travel writer. Because enjoying some city also implies a degree of interaction with its population even if that may be only observing people.

Bundek parkZagreb Croatia

What else have we not mentioned? Well, quite a lot – Maksimir, Sunday change of the honorary guard of the Cravat Regiment at St Mark’s Square, which gives you goose pimples from excitement, excellent food…

Cravat RegimentZagreb Croatia

Cravat RegimentZagreb Croatia

St Mark’s SquareZagreb Croatia

Maksimir Park Zagreb Croatia

Haeming criticised Zagreb quite a lot. Every one of us has their own perspective and it’s clear that not everyone will like Zagreb nor will they consider it as the most desirable destination for tourist sightseeing. But if in such a big city you cannot find something you like, something beautiful, something entertaining, and if after your departure from it you are so frustrated that you call it the most boring city, then the city itself is not boring – you are the one that’s boring.

Me too, Sue – I am so very biased here but then I sit on the edge and consider objectively and sooo much to experience there especially culture and traditions which is what people look for as buildings or monuments become a side interest

Maybe I’m biased but, I love Zagreb for many reasons. Being born and raised near New York City, there aren’t many cities like that but, Zagreb to me is very unique in that its a big city with a small town feel to it and it seems that in a city of roughly 750,000 people its almost as if everyone knows each other there.

As for this German writer, this is coming from the most boring and humorless people on earth. Have you purchased the German book of Humor? The darn thing doesn’t exist and if you want boring, the German cities aren’t exactly the most exciting places on earth. But, to each is own.

Well said! It’s not all about aesthetics. Zagreb is lovely enough but it’s real beauty for me is that it is not too touristy and everything is geared up for local’s enjoyment rather than tourist traps. As a visitor you are able to gatecrash the party without being ripped off. I suggest the journo sticks to Prague, Venice, Rome & Barcelona, all fab cities but losing the authenticity that a Zagreb, Sarajevo, Porto or Tirana has in spades. Wilbur.

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Welcome!

Welcome to my blog. Here I will bring to you a variety of topics covering the documented truth about that terrible war that Croatia had to endure during the period between 1991 and 1995 and about Croatian political history that shaped a wonderful nation of people.

Croatian people wanted independence for centuries, just as they had it until the twelfth century but fate was not on their side – others wanted their beautiful land. In late 1980′s the will to break free from Yugoslavia which suffocated freedom and self determination through harsh communist party rule finally bore the desired fruit.

In June 1991 Croatia declared its independence; soon after the aggressive war against Croatia broke out. The struggle of the Croatian people for self-determination was a just one. But I fear genuine justice has not been served as there have been, and there still exist, international covert and overt moves to equate victims with aggressors continue in attempts to change history. Truth often becomes obscured and lost and that is why I have chosen to write this blog, to concentrate on actual events and issues about Croatia – wishing it a bright and freedom-loving future.

It certainly was not easy to come out of the war that was fought on two fronts:

1. On the military front the world’s public has seen the indiscriminate bombardment of Croatian cities, towns and villages from land, sea and air; the destruction of civilian targets including homes, schools, hospitals, churches, factories and cultural monuments; the blockading and destruction of roads, bridges and ports; the blockading of power, water, food and medical supplies. What hasn’t been shown on our television sets is the forced clearing and evacuation of towns and villages, followed by looting, torture, rape and murder carried out by the Serbian forces, who were initially backed by the federal Yugoslav army that was largely constituted by Serb nationals; the transportation of multiple hundreds of innocent Croatian civilians from Croatia into concentration camps Serbia (Begejci, Stajicevo, Sremska Mitrovica... from October 1991, and later (1992) transferred into Serb-held camps in Bosnia and Herzegovina (Omarska, Keratern, Manjaca, Trnopolje).

2. The second front was the war of political propaganda centred on: misinformation about the rights of minorities in Croatia; portrayal of the Croatian people as Ustasha or Fascists; the representation of the Croatian defence forces as illegal paramilitary units; the representation of the Croatian and Slovenian republics as unreasonable secessionists who are unwilling to negotiate; a regurgitation of distorted facts about World War II.

Indeed Croatia had an absolute right to defend itself and this is often forgotten if not often denied it.

Ina Vukic

Ina has been a tireless volunteer on humanitarian aid and fundraising for victims of war in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, especially war orphans. From1991 to beginning of 1994 she contributed in lobbying for international recognition of Croatian independence and Croatia’s rights in defending its territory and people from military aggression by Serbian forces. For this dedicated voluntary work Ina was awarded two Medals of Honour by the first president of the Republic of Croatia in 1995 (Commemorative Medal of the Homeland War and Order of the Croatian Trifoil). Ina has also written and published books in the English and Croatian languages on topics of migration and parallel lives; she has also written many articles for newspapers in Australia and Croatia on the plight of Croatian people for freedom and self-determination.

Blessed Aloysius Stepinac quote:

“When they take everything from you, you’ll be left with two hands; put them together in prayer and then you’ll be the strongest.” Blessed Aloysius Stepinac (1898 – 1960)

First President of Croatia Dr Franjo Tudjman quote:

“They could not, nor will they ever be able to kill our passion and our need to live in human dignity, in peace with ourselves and with the free nations of Europe. We have carved out that right at our first democratic elections. For this right and for our sacred land we are even ready to die” – Dr Franjo Tudjman (1922-1999) ( Addressing the Croatian nation at the moment of the start of Serbian aggression against Croatia, 16 October 1991)

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The First President of the Republic of Croatia, the late Dr Franjo Tuđman, kissing the new Croatian flag at the dawn of Croatia's independence

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